Best Deadlock Haze build: Abilities & Items

❘ Updated: 2024-09-06T19:38:09

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Playing Haze in Deadlock means staying hidden and only popping up when it’s too late for your enemies to do anything about it. If that sounds like your kind of game, here’s how to build her.

Deadlock is a 6v6 MOBA focused on gunplay, but that doesn’t mean you should dive into every fight without a plan. Haze uses invisibility, smoke bombs, and sleep daggers to make enemies irrelevant.

Haze is a blast to play if you build her to last into the late game when everyone’s bullets turn lethal. Let’s dive into the best abilities and items to make her unstoppable.

Best Haze abilities in Deadlock

Below you can find the order in which it’s best to upgrade your abilities:

The best Ability Point order for Haze in Deadlock starts by unlocking Fixation to give you a damage boost. After that, unlock Sleep Dagger to get your first active ability and put your enemies to sleep. Once that’s out of the way, unlock the last two: Smoke Bomb and Bullet Dance.

Continue distributing points into Fixation to amp your bullet damage and increase your single-target burst damage. Your second priority is to level up Sleep Dagger to continue to debuff your enemy and take advantage of the decreased cooldown at level 2.

Smoke Bomb‘s bonus movement speed may be appealing to grab early on, but you’ll want to wait until you’ve got your 3 maxed and 2 point sin your 1 to get that level 2 speed boost. The last two levels in your 2 and 3 are pure utility, so getting Bullet Dance maxed before those two will help you roll through teamfights.

Note: Haze is very easily countered by Metal Skin since almost all of her damage is dealt with bullets. If someone pops Metal Skin, toss a Sleep Dagger at them and wait out the duration.

Haze abilities explained

If you aren’t familiar with Haze’s kit and what she can do in Deadlock, here’s a quick rundown:

Sleep Dagger
- Throw a dagger that damages and sleeps the target. Sleeping targets wake up shortly after being damaged. Throwing a Dagger does not break your invisibility. Sleep Dagger does not interrupt enemies’ channeling abilities.
  - Level 1: Removes one stamina.
  - Level 2: Reduces cooldown by 13 seconds.
  - Level 3: Applies 12% Bullet Resist for six seconds on wake-up.
Smoke Bomb
- Fade out of sight, becoming invisible and gaining sprint speed. Attacking removes invisibility. Close enemies can see through your invisibility.
  - Level 1: Reduces cooldown by 15 seconds.
  - Level 2: Increases Invisibility Sprint Speed by six m/s.
  - Level 3: After being invisible, gain +30% Bullet Lifesteal for eight seconds.
Fixation
- Shooting a target increases your bullet damage on that target. Gain one stack per bullet hit, two if the hit is a headshot.
  - Level 1: Inflict 60 Spirit Damage and 15% slow for two seconds to target every 20 stacks.
  - Level 2: Earn +40 Max Stacks and 5 duration.
  - Level 3: Grants 0.2 weapon damage per stack.
Bullet Dance
- Enter a flurry, firing your weapon at nearby enemies with perfect accuracy. During the flurry, Haze gains a fire rate bonus and will evade some of the bullets shot at her.
  - Level 1: Boosts weapon damage by seven.
  - Level 2: Reduces cooldown by 40 seconds.
  - Level 3: Hits one extra target per shot.

Best build on Haze: Deadlock items explained

We’ve got items split into four categories – Early Game, Mid Game, Late Game/Luxury, and Situational.

The first three will clue you in on what to grab at each stage, but if you’re ahead, feel free to splurge on those Late Game goodies early. Situational items are your secret weapons for dealing with pesky mechanics.

Here’s what you need to buy to stack the odds in your favor and make victory look easy with Haze in Deadlock:

Early Game items

In the early game, prioritize purchasing items that boost Haze’s damage output and speed. Extra Stamina allows you to keep your stealth abilities active while you dish out damage. With Ammo Scavenger, you make sure you never run out of damage.

Healing Rite is a great option for if you’re having a hard time in lane, but everything else here serves to directly boost your mobility and DPS. You won’t want to buy tank items if you can help it. Also, make sure you get Rapid Rounds early to stack your 3 as fast as possible.

Mid Game items

Tesla Bullets are an absolute must as soon as you hit mid game to make farming camps easier, though Slowing Bullets may be a better choice if you’re trying to run from lane to lane and snowball. Swift Striker is a cheap and easy way to increase your fire rate even further, and Headhunter’s bonus damage and healing makes Haze incredibly hard to trade with.

Enduring Speed and Bullet Lifesteal keep you in the fight longer, so you won’t need to run away as much because you’ll recover health and stamina more quickly.

Suppressor is a must-have once you get spirit damage on your 3, and Quicksilver Reload is the way to go now that Active Reload has been nerfed on the August 29 patch.

Late Game/Luxury

In the late game, Haze’s starts to shape into a true, high risk/high reward glass cannon who can burst down almost any hero. As long as she’s not too behind.

Lucky Shot and Ricochet are sort of interchangeable, with Lucky Shot being your best bet for single-target damage and carry potential. Ricochet gives you better camp and wave clear, making it so you can recover if you get set back. Both are strong, but grab one or the other first based on what you need.

Silencer, meanwhile, is a must if you’re against heroes that want to get close and hard CC you out of Bullet Dance like Mo & Krill. Make sure you pop the active before you ult.

However, if your opponent is smart enough to grab actives like Knockdown and Curse, you’re going to have a bad time. Grab Unstoppable to make yourself CC immune and Leech to keep yourself sustained in fights.. Stamina is also a big concern if you plan to stay mobile, so make sure to finish Superior Stamina by this point in the game.

Improved Reach is fantastic for Bullet Dance, and Superior Duration can be used on either her ult or Sleep Dagger based on personal preference.

Situational items

Here are the best situational items for Haze in Deadlock:

Active Reload: For Haze, this item is perfect – reload swiftly, boost Fire Rate and Bullet Lifesteal, and keep attacking. It’s harder to justify than Quicksilver Reload after the nerfs and with so many strong Weapon items, but it’s still worth buying at times.
Toxic Bullets: Bleed damage steadily chips away at enemies’ health while Healing Reduction keeps them from recovering. It’s perfect for a stealthy attacker who needs to wear down foes.
Crippling Headshot: Reducing a target’s Bullet and Spirit Resist makes it easier for Haze to deal massive damage with her quick, stealthy attacks. Used to be core, but Headhunter’s too good for the cost.
Siphon Bullets: Haze’s bullets steal Max HP from enemies temporarily. If an enemy dies while siphoned, she permanently gains health, but she loses stacks if she dies. Great for shredding tanks.
Improved Bullet Armor, Improved Spirit Armor, and Diviner’s Kevlar: They all make Haze sturdier. While she’s a stealthy character, mistakes can happen and it’s good to have a solid defense just in case. Grab these if you’re struggling to live.
Debuff Remover: Haze’s entire strategy relies on being quick and staying out of the enemy’s line of sight. If someone debuffs her, you need to be able to act quickly to counteract this.
Veil Walker: With it, Haze gets Stealth, boosts Movement Speed, restores Bullet and Spirit Shields, and gains extra Fire Rate for her next magazine.
Ethereal Shift: She becomes untargetable and invincible, though she can’t move or act. Afterward, she instantly reloads and gains bonus Spirit Power, perfect for a quick comeback.
Slowing Hex or Knockdown: These items are perfect to slow down or immobilize enemies while you deal damage, or to get someone off your back as you try to slip away.

That’s all you need to start winning with Haze in Deadlock! Don’t worry if you lose a few matches at first. Keep practicing, and you’ll get the hang of it. Make sure you get a hang of the game’s core mechanics, like Runes and Souls.

If Haze isn’t your style, no worries. You can check out our Deadlock character tier list to see your other options.